Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Comp. Ltd.

Guo-Huei Wu

Chih-Liang Chen

Hui-Zhong Zhuang

Li-Chun Tien

Pochun Wang

Shih-Wei Peng

Jung-Chan Yang

Jiann-Tyng Tzeng

Ru-Gun Liu

Chih-Ming Lai

Wei-Cheng Lin

Ting-Wei Chiang

Shih-Ming Chang

Yu-Xuan Huang

Yi-Hsiung Lin

Yu-Jung Chang

Ya-Chi Chou

Lee-Chung Lu

Shang-Wen Chang

Cheng-Chi Chuang

Xiangdong Chen

Yi-Hsun Chiu

Jerry Chang Jui Kao

Jian-Sing Li

Po-Chun Wang

Chia-Tien Wu

Chi-Yu Lu

Wei-Ling Chang

Ting-Yu Chen

Wei-Hsin Tsai

Ching-Wei Tsai

Shun-Li Chen

Jung-chan Yang

Shi-Wei Peng

A semiconductor structure includes a first transistor, a second transistor, a first dummy source/drain, a third transistor, a fourth transistor, and a second dummy source/drain. The first transistor and a second transistor adjacent to the first transistor are at a first elevation. The first dummy source/drain is disposed at the first elevation. The third transistor and a fourth transistor adjacent to the third transistor, are at a second elevation different from the first elevation. The second dummy source/drain is disposed at the second elevation. The second transistor is vertically aligned with the third transistor. The first dummy source/drain is vertically aligned with a source/drain of the fourth transistor. The second dummy source/drain is vertically aligned with a source/drain of the first transistor. The gate structure between the second dummy source/drain and a source/drain of the third transistor is absent. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor structure is also provided.

Stacking nanosheet transistors with an intermediate gate structure absent

An integrated circuit includes a first transistor of a first conductivity type including a first active area extending in a first direction; a second transistor of the first conductivity type including at least two second active areas extending in the first direction and a first gate stripe crossing the at least two second active areas; and a third transistor of a second conductivity type that is stacked on the second transistor and includes at least two third active areas arranged above the at least two second active areas. A top most boundary line of the first active area is aligned with a top most boundary line of one of the at least two third active areas in a layout view.

Integrated circuit

An integrated circuit includes metal rails. The integrated circuit includes a first layer including a first metal rail and a second layer including a second metal rail, where the second layer is above the first layer along a first direction. The integrated circuit includes a third layer including an active region of a transistor, where the third layer is above the second layer along the first direction. The integrated circuit includes a fourth layer including a third metal rail, where the fourth layer is above the third layer along the first direction. The integrated circuit includes a fifth layer including a fourth metal rail, where the fifth layer is above the fourth layer along the first direction.

Integrated circuit with backside power rail and backside interconnect

A semiconductor structure includes an isolation structure formed on a substrate, a gate-all-around transistor structure formed on the isolation structure, a via electrically coupled to a gate terminal of the gate-all-around transistor structure, and a buried conductive pad formed within the isolation structure and electrically coupled to the via. The buried conductive pad can extend through the isolation structure in two dimensions, such as in both a vertical dimension and a horizontal dimension. The semiconductor structure can provide advantages in terms of routing flexibility, among other possible advantages.

Buried pad for use with gate-all-around device

A method includes fabricating semiconductor structures extending in a first direction and fabricating gate-conductors extending in a second direction intersecting the semiconductor structure. The method also includes patterning a first metal layer to form horizontal conducting lines extending in the first direction, and patterning the second metal layer to form vertical conducting lines extending in the second direction. A first vertical conducting line is aligned with a first gate-conductor underneath and a second vertical conducting line is aligned with a vertical boundary of a circuit cell. The first vertical conducting line is directly connected to a first horizontal conducting line through a first pin-connector, and the second vertical conducting line is directly connected to a second horizontal conducting line through a second pin-connector.

Signal conducting line arrangements in integrated circuits

An integrated circuit includes a first and second active region, a first conductive structure, an insulating region, a set of gates and a set of contacts. The first and second active region are in a substrate, extend in a first direction, are located on a first level, and being separated from one another in a second direction. The first conductive structure extends in the first direction, is located on the first level, and is between the first and second active region. The insulating region is located on at least the first level, and is between the first and second active region and the first conductive structure. The set of gates extend in the second direction, overlap the first conductive structure, and is located on a second level. The set of contacts extend in the second direction, overlap the first conductive structure, and is located on the second level.

Integrated circuit and method of manufacturing same

A circuit includes a first metal layer having a first first metal layer strip adjacent to a first boundary and a second first metal layer strip adjacent to a second boundary opposite to the first boundary. The first and second first metal layer strips, the first boundary, and the second boundary are parallel to each other. The circuit further includes a second metal layer having a first second metal layer strip and a second second metal layer strip adjacent to the first second metal layer strip. The first second metal layer strip is connected to the first metal layer strip at the first first metal layer strip and the second second metal layer strip is connected to the first metal layer strip at the second first metal layer strip. Each of the first and the second second metal layer strips are parallel to each other.

Layout architecture for a cell

A method includes fabricating a first-voltage underlayer power rail conductively connecting to the source region of a first-type transistor and fabricating a second-voltage underlayer power rail conductively connecting to the source region of a second-type transistor. Each of the first-voltage and second-voltage underlayer power rails extends in a first direction. The method also includes patterning a first connection layer to form a first-voltage power rail and a second-voltage power rail extending in the second direction which is perpendicular to the first direction. The first-voltage power rail is directly connected with the first-voltage underlayer power rail through a first via-connector and the second-voltage power rail is directly connected with the second-voltage underlayer power rail through a second via-connector.

Power rail and signal conducting line arrangement

A method is provided, and including operations as below: forming multiple active areas extending in a first direction; forming multiple conductive patterns extending in a second direction different from the first direction and arranged in a first layer above the active areas; forming multiple gates extending parallel to the conductive patterns; and forming a first set of conductive lines extending in the first direction and arranged in three first metal tracks that are in a second layer above the first layer, wherein one of the first set of conductive lines is arranged in a middle track of the three first metal tracks, coupled to one of the gates and overlap a first shallow trench region between two of the active areas.

An integrated circuit is provided and includes first and second gates arranged in first and second layers, wherein the first and second gates extend in a first direction; a first insulating layer interposed between the first and second gates, wherein the first insulating layer, a first portion of the first gate, and a first portion of the second gate overlap with each other in a layout view; a cut layer, different from the first insulating layer, disposed on a second portion of the first gate; a first via passing through the cut layer and coupled to the second portion of the first gate; and a second via overlapping the first portion of the first gate and the first portion of the second gate, and coupled to the second gate. The first and second vias are configured to transmit different control signals to the first and second gates.

An integrated circuit includes first-type transistors aligned within a first-type active zone, second-type transistors aligned within a second-type active zone, a first power rail and a second power rail extending in a first direction. A first distance between the long edge of the first power rail and the first alignment boundary of the first-type active zone is different from a second distance between the long edge of the second power rail and the first alignment boundary of the second-type active zone. Each of the first distance and the second distance is along a second direction which is perpendicular to the first direction.

Active zones with offset in semiconductor cell

A method is provided and includes operations below: forming a multilayer stack, wherein the multilayer stack includes multiple first semiconductor layers and multiple second semiconductor layers that are alternately stacked; forming a first source region and a first drain region on opposing sides of a first portion of the multilayer stack and forming a second source region and a second drain region on opposing sides of a second portion of the multilayer stack; removing the second semiconductor layers in the multilayer stack; forming a first gate region, corresponding to a first transistor, over the first portion of the multilayer stack; forming a first insulating layer above the first gate region; and forming a second gate region, corresponding to a second transistor, above the first insulating layer and over the second portion of the multilayer stack.

A semiconductor device includes a semiconductor substrate with active regions and a first buried metal layer provided below the semiconductor substrate. The first buried metal layer includes a first buried conductive rail, a first set of buried conductive fingers that extends from the first buried conductive rail, and a second set of buried conductive fingers that are interleaved with the first set of buried conductive fingers. The first set and the second set of buried conductive fingers extends beneath more than one of the active regions. In this manner, the first set and the second set of buried conductive fingers can be utilized to distribute different voltages, such as an ungated reference voltage TVDD and a gated reference voltage VVDD in a header circuit with reduced resistance.

Method of making semiconductor device including buried conductive fingers

An integrated circuit includes a semiconductor substrate, an isolation region extending into, and overlying a bulk portion of, the semiconductor substrate, a buried conductive track comprising a portion in the isolation region, and a transistor having a source/drain region and a gate electrode. The source/drain region or the gate electrode is connected to the buried conductive track.

Buried metal track and methods forming same

A method of generating an IC layout diagram includes overlapping a channel region of an upper transistor of a complementary field-effect transistor (CFET) in an IC layout with a gate region of the CFET, thereby defining a channel overlap region, positioning an isolation region in the IC layout, the isolation region including an entirety of the channel overlap region, intersecting the isolation region with a conductive region, and generating an IC layout diagram based on the IC layout.

Growing community of inventors

Tainan, Taiwan

Guo-Huei Wu